Network-based services are often provided over networks, such as the internet, the network of a public telephone company, or a company's own private telecommunications network. Such a network-based service may involve the use of multiple hardware devices and/or multiple software applications. Before the service is operable, however, the multiple hardware devices and/or multiple software applications used by the service must generally be configured.
To configure a hardware device, a skilled technician may use a remote device coupled to the hardware device to be configured. The technician shuts down the remote device, installs a software service driver on the remote device, and then restarts the remote device. Once the service driver is installed, configuration information is sent through the service driver to the hardware device, thereby configuring the hardware device so that the hardware device can operate to carry out the service. This manner of setting up a network-based service by loading a service driver can be a relatively time-intensive, manual task.
Not only can this setting up of a network-based service for the first user be time consuming, but the setting up of the same service for subsequent users can also be time consuming. To set up the service for a second user, the hardware devices involved in supplying that service to the second user will need to be configured. As in the case of setting up the service for the first user, a technician may load a second service driver onto a remote device. Once the second service driver is installed on the remote device, configuration information is sent through the second service driver and to the hardware device being configured.
If the remote device used to set up the service for the second user is already operating at the location of the second user in the field, then the technician need not go to the location of the second user and install the remote device before the second service driver can be installed. Rather, the technician can remotely install the second service driver on the existing remote device. Even in the case where the remote device is already installed, however, the technician still handles loading a service driver onto a remote device each time a device is configured to provide the service to a new user.
Not only is the need for the technician to install service drivers undesirable, but the conventional installing of service drivers is also undesirable in that service may be interrupted to exiting services and/or users. To install a service driver on a remote device, the remote device is typically shut down, the service driver software added, and the remote device is rebooted. The installation of service drivers may therefore cause service interruption to other existing services that use the remote devices.
Accordingly, the above-described setting up of network-based services generally involves a technician being involved every time a service is provided to a user. This is undesirable. Moreover, the setting up of services for new users often results in service interruption to existing users. This is undesirable. A system is sought that eliminates the cost, time, complexity and service interruption associated with setting up such network-based services.